Two Things Constantly On My Mind
by ashleyjaneli
Summary: Ayumi Rae ran away a year ago since her dad never cared. After completing all four Grand Slams, she comes to Japan, meeting Echizen Ryoma. Soon, relationship deepens and Ryoma finds himself thinking of more than just tennis on his mind. RYOMA/OC
1. Prologue: Running Away

Prologue: Running Away

"_Dad! Look! I made you a rice ball! It's from Mom's country! Japan!" I lift the big, oversized rice ball onto his desk, hoping that he will notice. "I want to go to Japan someday! Can we?"_

_ He didn't notice. Or rather, ignored me. "Dad!" I tried again, "Do you know why I made the rice ball? Because it's my birthday!"_

_ "Dad!" I practically screamed, but he only got more and more immersed in his work. "I made it for you! Even though you never get me anything! Please eat it!"_

_ He finally lashed out, swiping his hand across the desk to knock the rice ball off. It flew through the air and crashed on the rug nearby, my hard work ruined. I barely had time to adjust to this, however, as his hand came swiping again, this time to my face. _

_ Clutching my cheek, tears spilling down my face, I listened to him still. "Can't you see that I'm doing work? How can you bother me with petty things like this? Stop bother me and get the hell out of here!"_

_ I could barely see through my tears as I got up quickly and stumbled out of his office in a run, down the hallways, and into my room. "It was my birthday…" _

_ Yes, it was my birthday. My first birthday without my mom. And well, I decided from then on that on my next birthday, my dad wouldn't be there either._

XXXX

It was the middle of the night. I turned ten when that event happened. That horrid event. I'm was almost eleven now, and I wouldn't stay here. Because I promised myself that he wouldn't be here for my next birthday, and I've spent all this time preparing.

I stuffed one last thing into the big duffle bag I carried. A photo of my mother. Then, I swiftly went out of my bedroom door, hurrying outside. There waited the chef and the gardener that had been hired here for almost my entire life. Brian and Anya.

"Everything's been prepared, Miss." Brian said. "Where will you go?"

"I'm sorry, I can't tell you." I said, and they knew why. If they figured out where I went, my dad would eventually as well. If he cared. "But it doesn't matter. I'll be all over the world anyway."

"I know you can take care of yourself," Anya said, "but be careful."

"Definitely," I said with a reassuring smile. "Now get back to bed before he notices that we are _all_ gone."

"What if the Master finds you?" Brian asked, a last question before turning around.

"He won't." I said, "and he won't care, anyway. I changed my name last week."

"To what?" Anya asked.

"From Rae Prior to Rae Ayumi. Like my mother."

"Good luck, Miss. I'll be praying for your health," Brian said.

As I tucked myself out of the small hole under the gate of our property, I smiled and waved. Now, I was finally free. With my plane tickets, money, and bank accounts. Every little paper in that house that could hurt me later was with me.

I didn't have a proper tennis bag yet, but my duffle bag would have to do for now. I knew where I was going to stay, and when, but I didn't care about that. I needed to train. I had been invited to the U.S. Open, and I accepted without my father's consent. Therefore I would first stay in America and win the U.S. Open. Then I would move around to Australia, France, and Wimbledon. Without my dad, without his name, just by myself. I had enough money for about a year, but when I became twelve, I would have to start working for more money.

Well, I wouldn't start looking that far ahead yet, but anyway, by the time I was twelve, I would be in Japan, having already won the Grand Slams. Well, that was my plan.

ONE YEAR LATER.

**A/N: I know she's young. But isn't Echizen? And he travels around by himself all the time. Whatever, it's a story. In the next chapter, she'll be twelve!**

…

Copyright © 2012 by Ashley Li. All rights reserved.


	2. Echizen Ryoma

Chapter One: Echizen Ryoma

"What's your name?"

"Ayumi Rae."

The clerk frowned, "You've been to a lot of places. Are you travelling by yourself?"

"I'm not allowed to tell you that." I said, "Now can you tell me where the Fukuya Condos are?"

Her eyes narrowed, but she continued. "Take a right from here and follow highway ninety-one until you get to the roads. Then take a right and keep going straight until you come along a school. Turn left from there and it should be on the left. You can't miss it." She said, "If I were you, though, I would get a taxi. It's almost an hour walk."

"Thank you," I replied, walking out the door, suitcase in hand and a battered Yonex bag hanging off my shoulders.

As I walked out of the airport, I was almost immediately greeted by a cold breeze of air. I shivered, goose bumps appearing on my legs. An hour walk…I couldn't decide whether or not I wanted to take it. Staring up at the sky by the road, I set my suitcase down and reached into my pocket for my wallet. I had enough money to afford a taxi. If I took one, I could get to my condo quicker and even fit in a few hours of tennis. _What to do? _I wondered.

"You need a taxi?" A taxi driver asked, pulling up in front of me. "Get in."

"H-hai…" I said, going with that decision as I hefted my red suitcase into the trunk, but kept my tennis bag with me in the back of the car.

"Where to?"

"Fukuya Condos, please?" _Please don't ask for an address._

He didn't reply, but instead started the car and started driving out of the airport and into a highway. As we entered the main road again, I saw many high rises, like New York, yet somehow, these ones were prettier. I didn't know how to explain it, but even in the old taxi that smelled Japan was pretty.

It looked almost like New York, but I didn't get the same feeling. Maybe it was because this was my home. Or maybe it was because I was finally free from my father. At that moment, I decided to stay in Japan for a while.

As we drove by the school that the clerk spoke of, I spotted a boy, about my age, with a white cap that had an R on it. I stared at him for a moment, wondering where I had seen him before as he walked out of the school towards his home, until it finally clicked in my head.

"STOP!" I yelled.

The taxi driver abruptly came to a screeching halt as I scrambled to get out of the car and motioned him to open the truck. Then, I frantically got my suitcase, threw in 100 yen in the taxi, and ran towards the boy with my two bags trailing behind me.

"Oi! Omai-tachi!" I yelled, waving my hand. He turned at the yelling with a confused look on his face. When I reached him, I set my suitcase down with my tennis bag and took a deep breath.

Then I reached into the pocket of my jean shorts to fish out my wallet and opened it, finding the photo of the guy with the cap. Closing one eye, I put the picture of him near the boy's head, trying to see some relevance. There was a match.

"Are you—" I turned the photo over to see rough penmanship, "—Echizen Ryoma?"

The boy tilted his hat up to see me more clearly as I was met by two brown eyes. He nodded, looking at the picture, and then to me as if to ask, _Why does a stranger have a picture of me?_

"Do you know Kevin Smith?"

He nodded once more.

Digging out a piece of paper from my bag, I held it out to him, "He's a close friend of mine. When he heard I was going to Japan, he told me to give this to you."

Echizen took the note and unfolded it, skimming through it quickly. His eyes narrowed on one part, but as soon as he finished, he folded it once more and stuffed it in his pocket. "Thank you very much."

I raised an eyebrow, "Am I allowed to see it?"

"No."

"I…see," I said slowly. This guy was not easy to talk to. The exact opposite of Kevin, yet probably alike in so many ways as well, since he practically idolized Echizen.

Suddenly, I remembered that I was trying to get to my condo. Turning my head, I spotted a school and recalled the directions given to me. But they were merely fuzzing memories, and I couldn't remember which way to go after reaching the school. "Ne," I started, "Do you know where the Fukuya Condos are?"

"It's on the way to my house." He said, and started walking in the same direction he was before.

I couldn't tell whether or not that meant to follow him or not, but I was going to be that it did, and so, I trudged behind him with my suitcase and tennis bag in tow. "So, how do you know Kevin?" I asked him as we continued to walk.

He paused, as if deciding whether or not to tell me. "Our fathers were rivals so we eventually became rivals, enemies. But when we played a match together, we became friends."

"That's nice," I smiled, "He talks about you all the time."

"What about you?" Echizen asked, surprising me by speaking up. "How do you know him?"

A laugh escaped my lips as I recalled how we met. "One day I found Kevin beating everyone in a tennis club and didn't like the way he was treating them. I challenged him to a match, I lost. But then I swore to beat him, especially since he judged me because I was a girl."

I continued, "And I finally beat him, last year. We became really good friends. Actually, he's probably my best. I beat him in these as well," I mentioned, looking down at my feet. I was wearing high tops from All Star Chuck Taylor and DC Comics. I loved the high tops, especially since my favourite superhero, Wonder Woman, was all over the shoe, fighting.

We started to approach a big set of condos, probably the ones I was looking for. They looked nice on the outside, but I didn't know what to expect. I had never been in this condo before, only my mom, and well, she didn't exactly have any pictures.

"What's your name?" He asked as we went inside.

As we entered the elevator, going to the top floor, I responded. "Ayumi Rae."

It was then that I finally noticed the tennis bag on his shoulder. "You play tennis?" I asked, opening the condo door. It was a big, high class condo that was being cleaned weekly, yet had no one living in it until now.

He nodded as I hefted my suitcase inside and closed the door, locking it afterwards. Echizen looked at me with a confused look, but I just grinned and swung my tennis bag on my shoulder to get a better grip. "Let's play a game."

Echizen raised an eyebrow, "Not in that."

By 'that' he must have meant the black hoodie I was wearing that said 'TENNIS FREAKAZOID' in bold, red letters and the jean shorts I was wearing. I stared at my dark red hair that fell to my hips and the DC high tops I wore.

My grin was almost wicked as I said, "Wanna bet?"

This is where I found myself with Echizen under the el of a sky train station. He was already on one of the two courts as I tied my hair into a messy bun, took off my hoodie to reveal a grey tank top, and got my silver racquet out and hefted it in my right hand.

"Here I go," I said, having gotten the serve. In one motion, I stopped bouncing the ball and tossed it in the air, arching my back. With a glint of my eye, I swung my racquet and hit the ball with a back spin on it.

I licked my lips as the ball hit the front of Echizen's service court and rolled back. He didn't have a chance at getting the ball, because it didn't bounce up. He looked stunned for a moment, but regained his usual composure with a smile and a tip of his head. "You're pretty good," he said.

"Domo," I said, doing a serve and volley this time.

We rallied with the net play for a bit, both smiling. Neither one of us let the ball out of our sight, we didn't budge an inch. We were strangers that only met today, but the two things we had in common were tennis, and Kevin. That alone was enough to keep us smiling. _Kevin, you introduced another great rival in my life, huh? _I thought. _Maybe Echizen will be able to get me into my lightweight shoes._

"Ne, you're really left handed, aren't you?" He asked as we rallied.

Not many people should know that I am left handed. It is noted on the internet, but I've always played with my right. Because I don't need my left; so far, I haven't met anyone who has pushed me far enough to make me use it. I aimed for a cord ball to my right as Echizen was on the left. He jolted with speed to the net and hit the ball as it came down, but the return was weak. A lob.

My eyes narrowed at his arms as he played with his right hand. I grinned as I jumped and switched to my left hand, "Speak for yourself!" Then, I smashed the ball, leaving a mark on the court.

"30-LOVE." I said quietly. "I guess lefties will always spot each other, huh?"

Echizen showed no emotion as I served the ball again, having returned the racquet to my right hand. My left hand wouldn't be taking part of this game anymore. All he did was slide on the court after I returned the ball, and jumped up, then returned the ball with a weird move. "Drive B," he said.

"You're pretty good," I quoted.

"Domo."

This made me grin as I served again, this time getting a point with a drop shot. He took a point from me after he had returned my cord ball with another cord ball, something that rarely happened and something I frankly never would have anticipated. Other than my zero-shiki serve and his Drive B, those were all the techniques we showed as we continued to play.

"Game. Ayumi. 1-0," I said as I won the first game. Then I crossed the court to the middle, "That's it for now."

He looked up then, an inquiring look on his face. "We'll play a serious match someday, Echizen Ryoma." I said, "You're fun to do light play with."

"When we have this serious match," Echizen said, "You'll be switching to proper shoes and your left hand."

Grinning, I untied my messy bun and let my hair fall to my back as I slipped my hoodie back over my head. "You're going to have to make me."

We put our racquets away and took swigs of water from the water fountain nearby. "What do you want to do now?" He asked.

"Oh? You're still sticking with me?" I laughed, "Well, I don't mind. Can we—"

"Rae Prior?" A voice interrupted.

Standing outside of the fence around the tennis courts was a middle aged man who wore a dress shirt with a tie and dress pants. He had a camera bag with him and was carrying a notepad and pen. I had never seen him before, but was not happy with how he addressed me.

"How do you know that name?" I asked slowly.

"I was an old friend of your father's back in the day. Not anymore, but I heard that his daughter was missing since last year."

"Inoue-san?" Echizen asked. Clearly he was familiar with the man.

"Ms. Prior, what are you doing in Japan? And with Echizen Ryoma?"

"I honestly haven't been called by that surname in a long time so I would appreciate it if you would start calling me by my real name, thank you." I said automatically.

"Ja—" Inoue paused, "—Ayumi-san."

This time my mouth stayed shut. But Echizen's didn't. "Who is Rae Prior?"

Inoue cleared his throat, "Rae Prior, the daughter of Ray Prior. Ray Prior is the head of a very prestigious company that pretty much sells anything, anywhere. Ayumi Rae, however, is the youngest woman ever to consecutively win all four women Grand Slams on her first try and without using her dominant hand or the proper footwear."

"I'm not the only one to do it," I grumbled.

"May I have an interview, Ayumi-san?" Inoue asked, preparing to write on his notepad.

I shook my head, refusing as he took a picture of me. "Please do not tell my father anything about me being in relation to the Prior name. I don't need him looking for me."

"He's probably already heard of you considering you completed all the Grand Slams," he said.

"I know." I said calmly, "But he doesn't know where I am so I would appreciate it if you kept my location out of your stupid article."

"Why did you come to Japan?" He went on, frantically writing as I turned, grabbed my tennis bag and started walking away.

"If I tell you, will you keep Japan out of it?"

"Of course. You probably have your reasons. I'll keep it out of it, but please answer me."

I paused and unzipped my tennis bag to bring out my shoes. Snap!Another picture. "To find someone who could make me put these on." Then I put the shoes back in my tennis bag and sauntered off towards a river bank under a bridge.

Waiting there for me was Echizen. This got me confused. How could he have made it here before myself? "That was quite rude of you," he remarked, head tipped down so that his hat covered his eyes.

"You are so prehistoric," I said, careful not to snap back. Controlling my anger when that name came up was a challenge for me. Who knew why I thought Echizen was prehistoric. To me, he just gave that aura. Except for when he played tennis. Then he kind of got a badass aura.

"What was that?"

"You heard."

Silence took over then as we sat on the grass near the river as the sun started to set in hazy orange colours. "Yappari," I said, breaking the silence. "Japan is a lot more beautiful than New York."

He produced an orange cell phone from his pocket and handed it out to me, "Email."

I was confused for a moment but took out my red cell phone as well and handed it to him. I punched my email into the cell phone as he did to mine, still confused to the sudden subject.

A whistle pierced through the air. We turned our heads to the path above us and saw four seniors coming our way.

"Eh? Ochibi has a girlfriend?" One senior with red hair and a bandage on his cheek said. He was the one whistling.

The tallest senior's glasses flashed as he fixed them. "It's a date."

"Get closer!" The red haired one shouted as they came down towards us.

I turned to Echizen, "Know them?"

He ignored me, "Senpai-tachi."

The seniors ignored us this time, spotting our cell phones. "Eh? I want to exchange emails with ochibi's girlfriend, too!"

And so, my cell phone was grabbed from my hand and passed around. "I don't know you," I didn't have to finish the sentence because every one of them probably knew what I was going to say next. _So why the hell are we exchanging emails?_

"You will soon," A light brown haired guy said, "We'll be your senpais'."

"I'm Kikumaru Eiji! Yoroshiku, ochibi's girlfriend!"

"Inui Sadaharu, I look forward to seeing your data."

"Fuji Syusuke, yoroshiku."

One of the seniors scratched his head sheepishly, "They aren't always like this. I'm Oishi Suichiro."

I didn't really know what to do. So instead I introduced myself. "Ayumi Rae," I said after some time. Echizen had disappeared. _Thanks…_

"Are you transferring to Seigaku?" Oishi asked.

I nodded and Eiji practically jumped with joy. "Yay! We're going to see ochibi's girlfriend every day now!"

"I'm not his girlfriend," I said, but he paid no attention.

"They changed the uniforms for the girls in our school," Fuji said.

Inui nodded, "Still sailor fuku. But now they are white, blue, and red."

"I'm glad you guys know this," I said sarcastically.

"Are you joining the tennis club?" Oishi asked, staring at my hoodie.

My cheeks heated as I quirked my lips to one side and looked away, "Depends."

Echizen returned, drinking out of a Ponta can. "Ne, ochibi, when did you and Rae-chan meet?" Eiji intervened.

He finished the juice and tossed it into a garbage can a few feet away. Show off. "Today," he said, sitting back down on the grass.

I joined him, "Don't call me Rae-chan, by the way. Rae's fine."

"You and ochibi met today and already went out on a date? Impressive." Eiji continued, putting Echizen in a headlock.

Fuji ignored Eiji, probably saving us from the questions. "Rae is an American name, isn't it?"

"No shit."

"What did she say?" Eiji asked, "Something in English."

"She said 'No shit.'" Inui translated.

"Eh? How rude!"

"How did you get it?" Fuji continued, sitting beside us. Now everyone was sitting as well.

"I was named after my dying father." I said, but shook my head as everyone's eyes started saddening. "Except that he didn't die like he should have." I shrugged, "He'll get there soon enough."

Nobody asked me how I could say that about my own father. Well, maybe they grew up in a happy family with a happy life, but I wasn't one of them. They were nice enough not to say anything though, as I got up and started walking back to the Fukuya Condos.

"Echizen?" I called behind me.

He gave no response, but I could tell that I got his attention. "I expect a tour of Seigaku on Monday!"

I continued to walk, not expecting a reply. "Only if you tell me what went on between you and your father."

…

Copyright © 2012 by Ashley Li. All rights reserved.


	3. Rumours

Chapter Two: Rumour

_Ding Dong!_

"Ack!" I yelled, tripping on the stairs. Ignoring the stab of pain that came from my back, I slowly got up and stomped my feet into the dress shoes provided with the Seigaku uniform. Then I grabbed a muffin and held it in my mouth as I swung my tennis bag around my shoulder with my school bag and opened the door.

"Did you hear that?" I asked Echizen after taking a bite from my muffin, referring to my fall.

"Yeah." He must think that I'm crazy. I kind of looked like it by how messy I looked. Locking the door to the condo, we took the elevator down to the lobby.

"Oi, Echizen! Is this the girlfriend I'm hearing about?" A boy asked. He looked older than us, but not by much.

"Girlfriend?" Echizen asked, confused to how he would think that.

"I'm Momoshiro Takeshi, you can call me Momo-chan. Second year at Seigaku." He said, extending a hand to me, "The rumour is that you are Echizen's girlfriend."

_I'll stick to Momo-senpai, _I thought. "Well it's called a rumour for a reason," I scoffed as we started walking down the street to Seigaku.

I didn't know whether or not I was happy to come to Japan at the start of the year. Because I did this, it would mean that I wouldn't be starting off the middle of a semester, but it would also mean that I wouldn't be able to see the cherry blossoms I had been hoping to see until spring. The wind was hard and cold today as we walked to school, even if we had the dark blue winter overcoats that we wore in the summer for Seigaku, it still wasn't enough.

The senpai's were right; the uniform was a sailor fuku. The skirt was dark blue as well as the top parts and the cuffs of the sleeves. Yet there was a line of white on the edge of the skirt, and the entire top was white except for the top. The only thing that was red on the uniform was the bow in the middle, and then shoes were black dress shoes. In the winter we were to wear the long blue overcoat to school and take it off inside. In the summer we would wear the skirt and a dress shirt with the red bow.

Echizen managed to snag me a Seigaku tennis bag, which was a change from the old Yonex one I had previously owned. It had more space in it which was a lot easier when I had to carry around four racquets, two pairs of shoes, my favourite grip tape, tennis balls, and gym strip. No one seemed to take note of us as we entered the school that was crowded with students. Since Momo was a second year, he went to a different side of the school than us. "Where's the office?" I asked Echizen.

"This way," he said, once again leading the way through a hallway. The office wasn't too far from the entrance as it should be, and it was rather big.

I went inside with Echizen lingering by the door, the receptionists looking at us with inquiring looks. "Hi, I'm Ayumi Rae, transferring to Seigaku today."

"Ah, yes, Ayumi Rae." The receptionist said, digging out a folder from a drawer. She took out a few papers and handed them to me one by one. "This is your timetable, your student card, and a list of things that you may need for your classes."

I looked at the list. It consisted of pencils, notebooks, and other school essentials I already had in my bag. "I have everything except the textbooks."

"You will be provided with them when you get to your classes." She reassured me.

"Well, thanks."

"No problem, sweetie. Do you need someone to show you around? Seishunn Gakuen is pretty big." The receptionist looked at Echizen, "Oh! Actually, you may be in the same homeroom as Echizen-san! 1-2, right?"

Echizen nodded, head low. "Perfect!" She said, "Then he can show you around. You might have a few classes with each other as well."

I smiled at her and said my thanks as we got out of the office. Echizen grabbed the timetable from my hand as I put my student card in my school bag. I gave him a look that told him to give it back to me, but he ignored it tossed it in a recycling bin nearby. A surprised look crossed my face as I was about to retrieve it when he said, "It's the same as mine."

It took me awhile to process what he was saying, "The exact same? So why'd you throw it away?"

"You won't need it."

"And why wouldn't I need it?"

"Because all you have to do is follow me."

I raised my eyebrows, "You're actually going to show me around?" It was unreal. But at the same time, it made sense. Our last names, A and E, were close to each other. And our first names both started with R. We probably were bound to have a lot of classes together, who knew that we would have _all _of them together though. I shook my head, _This just doesn't happen to normal people._

"You know my condition."

I pursed my lips, "Are you sure you want to know about that?"

Echizen nodded, causing me to sigh. There was no other way out of it. I would probably get lost if someone didn't help me get around, but that information was classified. I had spent the last year lying about my parents. Only Kevin knew the truth. So how could I tell Echizen, trusting him only by the fact that Kevin idolized him? "Then…" I paused as we came to class 1-2, our homeroom. "I'll tell you after school."

"I have practice." He said, obviously referring to tennis.

"Then I'll do your practice with you and tell you after," I said, pausing as he walked inside the class.

"Are you Ayumi Rae-san?" A man that looked like the sensei asked, interrupting whatever Echizen would have said. I guess he didn't mind me telling him after practice, because he walked over to a desk in the class and sat down, leaving me with the sensei.

"Hai," I said.

"Hajimemashite, I'm Aizawa-sensei, your homeroom teacher. Yoroshiku and welcome to Seishunn Gakuen, I hope you enjoy the year." He said in a friendly voice.

"Arigato, I'm sure I'll have fun here," I said, bowing my head politely. "Kochirakoso dozo yoroshiku onegai shimasu. I'm Ayumi Rae, as you already know."

"Yes, it's great to have you in our class. Could you wait outside until I call you in? Then you can introduce yourself and take that seat near the window." Aizawa-sensei said.

I looked at the seat in the back near the window. It was a nice spot, diagonal from Echizen, who was in the middle row. Other than him, I knew nobody there.

"Are you planning on participating in the Grand Slam next year?" He asked.

"Yeah, but the Grand Slams just ended this year so the U.S. Open will probably start in a couple of months." I replied, cheeks heating from the sudden question.

Then he closed the sliding door to homeroom as the class took their seats. I waited outside, sitting on the floor and leaning against a locker, listening to what he was saying. Aizawa-sensei welcomed everyone from their weekend and talked about the new uniforms.

"Before we take attendance," I heard him say, "We have a new transfer student from America."

This is when the sliding door slowly reopened to show the class staring at me. "Please introduce yourself," Aizawa-sensei said as I entered the class and stood in the middle.

He stood by the board with a stick of chalk, ready to write my name. "I'm Ayumi Rae, yoroshiku onegai shimasu. I hope I have a good year with you all." Was all I could manage to get out, bowing my head. _Was there something I missed?_ I wondered as I took the seat by the window, all eyes still on me, which really sucked since my chair made a screeching noise as I pulled it back.

Aizawa-sensei proceeded with attendance which took some of the eyes off me. The only person who didn't even look at me was Echizen, and I was thankful for that. I had come to realize that Echizen's stare was just as powerful as forty students combined, and I could always tell when he was looking at me because of that. It got me on edge.

School breezed by quickly, mostly because there was so much work to do. Echizen almost left me behind a couple of times, but other than that, he was a good tour guide. Soon enough we were at Echizen's practice with the Seigaku regulars. They looked sharp; I got a feel of their skill level, especially the captain's. He looked scary. That was the moment where I decided that I wanted to play him, someday.

Having already changed in the bathroom previously, I was back in my comfortable shorts, high tops, and tank, hoodie stuffed away in my bag. As soon as I had started running beside the regulars I was stopped. Well, I was expecting that.

"Oi! Kimi!" An old women, most likely the coach, called.

I walked towards her coolly. "Hai?"

"This is the boys' tennis club practice, if you wish to participate, join the girls' team."

"I don't mean to participate," I said, "I just happen to be copying the actions they are performing in a short distance from them."

The coach kept her firm face, "It's not allowed."

"Where does it say so?" I prompted almost immediately.

She sighed, "You're not giving up, are you?" I didn't move, and held my stare. "Well, 'copy' them to your heart's content, then."

"I didn't need your permission, but okay," I muttered quietly so that she couldn't hear before jogging up to the regulars again and joining them. I was a little intimidated by all of them being so tall, so I kept a distance that wouldn't allow them to talk to me. They all seemed to acknowledge my presence there; however they didn't bother to stop me.

"Ochibi's girlfriend is joining us today!" Eiji exclaimed as we finished running around the courts.

"Echizen's girlfriend?" Murmurs started to fill the courts.

My eyebrow twitched, "I'm definitely not his girlfriend."

"Hear that, Echizen?" Momo-senpai asked, pushing Echizen a bit in a teasing voice. "You seem hurt!"

"Senpai-tachi," I sighed.

"Eh? Why does she get to train with the regulars! I want to train with them, too!" I heard whimpers from the bench where the coach was. Many girls were almost in tears.

"You can't," The coach said firmly to their crying faces.

"Then why can she?"

Fuji walked over to the bench, "Gomen, min'na-san, Ryuzaki-sensei is right." They swooned over his glowing smile. "Ayumi-san has to train for the Grand Slams next year."

Eiji joined him, "You can't train with us, sorry. Rae-chan is also training with us is because she is ochibi's girlfriend."

"Eh?"

"Is that true, Ryoma-sama?" A loud girl with pigtails shouted.

He peered at her from underneath his hat, "Yeah."

I turned away so that they wouldn't see my shocked face. _What the hell? _I thought.

"So if we were dating one of you we could train with you too?"

Fuji nodded as Eiji said, "But that's not going to happen because we all want to date Rae-chan!"

"Eh?" Their shouts reached the other side of the school.

"You heard them, now; go back to your club activities." Ryuzaki-sensei said.

As soon as they disappeared around the corner, I let my expression show. "What the hell was that?"

Momo-senpai grinned, "We know you guys aren't actually dating."

"But now you can train with us without any problems!" Eiji said.

Inui's glasses flashed, "That was quite entertaining."

"Everyone thinks I'm dating Echizen now, though." I said, "And that you all want to date me."

Echizen shrugged, "You want to train with us or not?"

I shook my head towards the ground, as if I were saying that I could live with it. They finished their practice with me close behind, even having a match with Momo-senpai—which I won. I'm not sure if either of us were really trying so I made a note to have a serious match with him later.

We ended up walking home with Eiji and Momo-senpai, but we later had to split up because our houses went different ways. "I don't have much to tell you," I told Echizen as we neared my condo. "My dad is a wealthy business man in America. I was born here with my mother's culture, but we moved to America with him. When she died things kind of changed and my father no longer showed any interest in me. Any effort I ever made to impress him he threw away, so I ended up running away.

I continued, "I met Kevin and I lived with him for a bit. By then I made the U.S. Open with his help. After I won the U.S. Open I moved on to the French, Wimbledon, and Australia Opens. I changed my name so that my father wouldn't recognize me, and I even grew out my hair. Kevin visited me but he couldn't stay with me so after the Australia Open I went back to America to tell him my plans. I wanted to revisit Japan where my mother was born and to see if there was anyone who could really make me try."

"He hasn't come looking for you?"

"He's an asshat and he thinks I'm one too, so why would he come for me?" I asked, then laughed knowing that he wanted a serious answer. "He probably recognized me, but it's been a year. If he cared, he would have sent some people after me, but he hasn't. So I guess I'm on my own then."

"Who was your mother?" He asked.

"My mother wasn't part of your condition," I reminded him, but continued anyway. "She died in a car accident when I was a child, but she really loved tennis and taught me a lot. Her name was Ayumi Morita."

"Ayumi Morita," Echizen repeated, processing the name through his mind. "I think I've heard of her. She was known for strong and consistent two-handed groundstrokes which she used to hit very flat."

I nodded, but he continued to speak. "You've already surpassed her then."

"Have I?" I asked him, raising both eyebrows.

"You're twenty-first in the world. Your mother was forty-second. She was seventh overall in Asia, you're third."

Echizen's footsteps suddenly scrapping against the pavement. "Ne, what is Kevin to you?"

"Again, not part of the condition." I reminded him, "But since I'm telling you extra, I'll be expecting help on our ridiculous workload."

He agreed, so I started talking. "He's like a brother, what's he to you?" I asked. No matter how many times we talked, our conversation always ended up going to tennis or Kevin, because it was one of the only things we had in common. I wondered when it would change.

"Friend. Rival." He replied, "Do you feel anything for him?"

I shrugged as we entered the condo, unsure of what he meant. Brotherly love or romantic love? I hadn't really thought of the question either, and I wasn't sure what Kevin thought. "Not sure."

…

Copyright © 2012 by Ashley Li. All rights reserved.


	4. Name Game

Chapter Three: Name Game

"He ditched me again," I grumbled as I wandered the halls of Seishunn Gakuen. At the moment, I didn't care about getting to class; all I wanted to do was get to Echizen and tell him off. And when I did, my mission of getting him annoyed failed abruptly as the teacher entered the class.

Echizen shrugged as I tried to bring up the topic, "You got here, didn't you? That means that you've at least memorized how to get to English."

And now I was annoyed. Mostly because he was right; this was the second time he had mysteriously left me at the school gates so that I could find my way around school by myself. His strategy was working, but I wasn't ready to stop my snarky attitude yet.

Across me, my classmate, Osakada Tomoko dropped her eraser on the ground and casually picked it up, leaving a note on my desk in the process. She winked at me as I opened it with curiosity, wondering what it could say.

_How's it like, dating Ryoma-sama? _It read.

Heat rose to my cheeks as I immediately ripped the note, wishing to be rid of the message. Hearing my name called by the teacher, I quickly looked up, face slightly flushed, "H-hai!"

"Please translate the sentence on the board into Japanese," The teacher said.

I walked towards the board, unable to not notice that Echizen was sleeping. _Shouldn't he have spared me and instead pick Echizen? _I thought irritably as I translated the sentence.

"That's correct," the teacher said, "You may be seated."

Throughout the rest of the day, I could see Echizen struggling to stay awake and stay out of boredom as well. He looked like he knew everything that we were learning, which wasn't that surprising to me as I was enduring the same feelings as him. At least I could look like I paid attention. At the end of the day, we were both glad to be rid of school and head to practice.

Although I wasn't in their club.

Sure, I trained with them, because apparently I was "the girl who was Echizen Ryoma's girlfriend and the one that captured the regulars' hearts." This idea still made me laugh, but part of me didn't feel right, as if I were a third wheel to their group. Like they only let me train with them because they had to; which didn't make sense because they had no obligation to either.

I shrugged as I walked out of Socials, _I won't be participating in any real matches anyway._

Stopping abruptly, I realized that Echizen wasn't with me and that he was still in the classroom sleeping. "Oi! Echizen!" I called into his ear. "Wake up!"

He remained sleeping, face on his desk, and drool slightly coming out of his mouth. "Echizen! We're going to be late for practice and Captain Tezuka will probably make us run ten laps around the court." I said, "Although since I'm not in your club he wouldn't have the need to go after me…."

Yes, something was definitely bothering me. I felt like that kid that always followed people, despite their attempts to ward them off. Shaking my head, I rid myself of the idea. "Ryoma!" I tried one more time.

And this time he opened his eyes. "Well, finally," I sighed, "School's over. Let's go."

He nodded, putting his notebooks inside his bag and taking out his cap to put on his head. "You called me Ryoma."

I thought back to when I was trying to get him to wake up, "Yes, I did. And?"

"Betsuni," he scoffed. "Shouldn't you ask permission before you can call someone by their first name?"

"They don't do so in America," I replied, searching for a reason.

"We aren't in America."

Suddenly, I turned around to face Echizen who was trailing behind me. "Alright. Echizen, do I have permission to call you by your first name?"

"Weiss." He paused, "Rae."

"Seriously?" I asked as we arrived at the tennis courts, having already changed into our uniforms. Or rather, he had changed into his uniform, and I had changed into some comfortable tennis attire.

"Shouldn't you ask permission before you call someone by their first name?" I imitated him.

He glanced at me from behind, tilting his cap up slightly in a gaze that I couldn't help but adore for the slightest moment. "Really? But you're already calling me Ryoma," he said, turning to face me. "Shouldn't I be able to call you Rae?"

I grinned, "Only if we get to have a serious match soon."

We continued walking towards the club, "You don't need to ask permission for that."

"I'll be anticipating it."

…

A/N: What a short chapter…but you know, I kind of felt like it should end here. I'll upload another soon!

…

Copyright © 2012 by Ashley Li. All rights reserved.


	5. Jealousy

Chapter Four: Jealousy

While Ryuzaki-sensei told the club how they would be training today, I took that time to get water. Inui had made everyone run laps around the court earlier, his penalty juice terrifying even the regulars.

"Ayumi!" The coach called me over.

I swallowed my last gulp of water before walking around the courts to her. "Hai, sensei?"

"Since the regulars have taken it upon themselves to let you train with them, it seems that everything had worked out fine. You can participate in any training we have here however you must know that you cannot participate in real district matches." She said.

"Of course," I replied, "I wasn't expecting to either. I just started training here because I figured that if I did I would get a chance to have a match against all the regulars."

"Is that your goal?"

"Not completely." I said, "You have a lot of strong people here Ryuzaki-sensei. They're the perfect team and I bet they intimidate your opponents. That's why I believe that at least one of these guys will be able to really get me going."

"Get you going as in pushing you to put on those shoes in your bag?" Ryuzaki-sensei asked.

I nodded sheepishly, "I really want to put them on. They're new after all."

"It does make me wonder how you've managed in such shoes," She said, "Do you train in those?" The coach asked, motioning to the high tops.

Pursing my lips, I hesitated, wondering if I should tell her. "No."

"No? What shoes do you practice in then?"

I sighed and went on my toes to whisper in her ear. When she heard my answer, she couldn't help but laugh extremely loud, which, to my embarrassment, brought the whole team's attention to us. "That's tall! Didn't you trip at all?" Apparently she didn't even notice the staring.

"Of course I did," I said, turning beet red. "But practice makes perfect."

"Why don't you use those here? I bet it would help you even more."

"It's embarrassing," I said, my cheeks heating even more. "Besides, I train more at home than here anyway."

"That's not like you, Rae, to be embarrassed."

"Mou ii yo!"

Ryuzaki-sensei laughed, "Alright. Go play a match and maybe your cheeks will cool down."

_The coach is really good at reading people_, I realized and quickly got my racquet out before heading over to the regulars, who were dividing matches between them.

"So what were you and Ryuzaki-sensei talking about, Ochibi's kanojo?" Eiji asked, putting me into a playful headlock.

I tickled him, getting out of it and smirking. "Hi-mit-su!"

"Are you guys figuring out matches? Mind if I join?"

Our laughter stopped as we all turned to find Kevin. That's right. Kevin. I almost had to rub my eyes to see if he was really there. But when I figured out that he was, I couldn't help but throw my arms around him and almost tackle him to the ground.

"What are you doing in Japan?" I asked once we had both recovered from the thought that he was actually there.

"I have a tournament tonight. Sorry for not letting you know, Rae." He said sheepishly, "And that I'll be leaving tomorrow, too…"

"So? Who cares if you have to leave tomorrow? You're here right now and that's what matters to me."

"Momo-senpai," Ryoma smirked, "How about we play against them?"

"Yo, Ryoma! Hisashiburii!" Kevin called, going up to him.

"Mhm. Hisashiburii."

"I'm ready anytime you are, Echizen." Momo-senpai called from a court.

"How about it?" I asked Kevin, tying up my hair. "Want to verse them?"

He didn't hesitate. "Sure!"

They spun their racquet and figured out that they would be serving first. I knew that I sucked at doubles but I had also played with Kevin in doubles a few times so we both had a general sense of what each other's moves were. I could tell that Ryoma wasn't that great at doubles either, since he and Momo-senpai were drawing a line in the middle of the court.

This would also be my first full one set match against Ryoma, and I was eager to see what moves he had up his sleeve. "Here I go," he said, preparing to serve.

His serve came right at me, literally. It was a Twist Serve, which I knew was really difficult to do. "Oto," I said, stepping back slightly to return it. "Ryoma, are you trying to hit a lady in the face?"

Momo-senpai returned it, making a remark as well. "No kidding. Echizen, can't you be nicer to your girlfriend?"

It was an easy ball to return, and Kevin should have been able to return it, but he didn't even move. I realized then that he didn't know about the "being-Ryoma's-girlfriend-so-that-I-could-train-with-the-regulars" thing.

"15-LOVE!"

I gave him a joking thumbs up as my cheeks heated once more. "Here's the thing, Kevin! You see—"

"—is it true?"

"Don't start making assumptions here! Let me explain first before you someone decides to run away like they do in anime." I said in a forceful voice before whispering in his ear. "I've been pretending to be Ryoma's girlfriend so I can train with the regulars. They like to make fun of me for it. What's the big deal, anyway? You wouldn't care less even if I was his girlfriend."

"Mhm."

"Oi! I'm going to serve!" Ryoma yelled. I gave him a grateful nod, telling him to go ahead.

It turned out to be the weirdest doubles match of my entire life. Ryoma served his Twist Serve and Kevin returned it with full force—even though it was on _my _side—causing Ryoma to be surprised.

"15-ALL!"

This time when Ryoma served, it held more power, and once again, Kevin returned it with a big grunt. Except Ryoma didn't just let it go, he returned with force and they ended up just going at it in a power rally. Momo-senpai and I were just staring at them, wondering when we would get the ball, and why they were playing so fiercely.

"Ne, Momo-senpai." I asked him, crossing the court to the net. "Why does this look like a singles match to you?"

He came towards the net as well, "I have no idea. What are these guys doing? Echizen! Share the court!"

"Shimatta—" I heard Kevin's voice say just as I also heard a zooming noise come towards me. "Look out!"

I knew this would happen. Stupid boys. I turned sharply and caught the ball on my dominant left hand, unable to stop it from spinning and creating a burn mark on it. "Oi!" I yelled, ignoring the pain. "Is this a doubles match or a singles match?"

"Ayumi! Echizen! Switch teams!" Tezuka called.

I guess that meant that their endless rallying would stop, but would their cooperation be okay? Normally I'm pretty sure that they would be able to dominate on a doubles team, but something just wasn't right with them today.

And of course, it was always impossible to play tennis right when you were distracted, so as a result, Momo-senpai and I won. "That was…unsatisfying." Momo-senpai remarked as we drank water.

"Tell me about." I agreed, looking at Ryoma now who was practicing against a wall and Kevin who was playing a match with Arai.

"Could it be jealousy?" Eiji grinned.

"It's a date." Inui said, glasses glinting.

Taka-san nodded, "Definitely fighting over Rae."

"I'm sure they'll work it out soon." Fuji said.

"Muri." I said, crossing out their possibilities. "Kevin think's I'm nothing more of me than a little sister. Ryoma thinks of me as a nuisance that could get lost anywhere."

"Pfft," Momo-senpai said. "Both of them think of you as a crush."

"Both of them think of her as a challenge—" Kaidoh said.

"—thank you!" I exclaimed, finally hearing an answer I wanted.

"—of love." Eiji finished for him.

I glared at him as Tezuka stepped in. "Ayumi, how's that hand?"

Turning my left hand over, I still saw some of the burn marks from the tennis ball, but it wasn't that bad. "It's fine. It'll be good if I put some medicine on it."

"I'm betting on Echizen." I suddenly heard from my senpai's. Really, when would they ever stop teasing me? I felt like I had seven brothers and they were always beating up on the little sister while Tezuka would be the only one to stand up for me.

"Kevin."

"500 yen on Echizen."

"I bet Kevin and Rae's going to be together in two months."

"300 that Echizen and Rae will kiss next month!"

"Oi!" I yelled over them all. "Stop betting on my life!"

**A/N: Sorry for the slow update! I think I'm going to upload an Eiji/OC story soon so keep a lookout or put me on Author Alert! I've also got a Fuji/OC uploaded already! Haha, I love Prince of Tennis :)**

…

Copyright © 2012 by Ashley Li. All rights reserved.


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